Hic Sunt Dracones (SSoDI-N)

[ColArana]

Ranuen had focused his efforts so much on attack that... well. When it came to defense, he was... in a word? Lacking. Vutezoth's claws raked the air, and caught Ranuen full across his torso. If Vutezoth's sight had been better, this might well have split Ranuen in two. Mercifully, it came a bit shallow, but effectively knocked the swordsman out of the air, and Ranuen was thrown to the ground, a massive gash someone could probably have fit a fist in, opened in his torso. Ranuen coughed blood, but, amazingly, managed to stab his blade into the earth, and begin to stand again, seemingly unfazed by what would have been, to a normal human, a fatal injury. "Not.... yet." He breathed, standing more on sheer willpower than anything else. But before he could do anything further, Vutezoth took to the skies, quickly flying beyond what Ranuen would be able to catch up to, with even his best jump. Even if he used his flames to propel him higher, it wouldn't be enough. Agh.... damnit... He stumbled slightly, bringing all his will together. As the realization that his part in the fight was done came to him, the adreneline and determination that had kept Ranuen going despite burning through his strength reserves and ignoring his injuries began to fade, and Ranuen began to realize how banged up he'd really gotten. With so little effort concentrated on defense, he was reminded exactly what real and proper pain felt like. "Guys.... Are you guys...." And now. Now that the red haze of battle was gone, he saw Flint.

"....Oh shit."

Kelsey blasted off on her own. Again. Ranuen groaned, as he tried to figure out what to do about the dead body right there. Ranuen wasn't sure what to say in that moment. Comrades dying on him. It... wasn't something he was used to. He looked from Will to Val, and stepped away. There wasn't a place for him there. That was between Val and Flint. And maybe Will. It wasn't a place for strangers to tread. Ranuen walked over towards Leanne, Scott and Paul, arm across his gut, applying pressure to uselessly stem the bleeding. "Ah..... You guys.... Are you alright?" He asked lowly. This didn't feel like a victory. At all. It felt hollow as all hell.

[ParamountKeymaster]

Paul gazed at Will and Val from a distance, passively picking up on their conversation regarding funeral rites, then he turned to Leanne. His distraught expression was evidence enough of a heavy heart, and the nod he offered her was stiff and only barely detectable. "Y-Yeah... Yeah, that's fair. This... isn't really something that can be rushed."

Scott tenderly inspected himself, finding only slight bruises here and there. Taking deep breaths was somewhat uncomfortable against his ribs, but he wasn't much worse for wear otherwise. After that brief self-examination, Scott looked up at the hotel, then at his brother. "I don't think we can stay here."

"Probably not," Paul sadly agreed. Structural damage to the building aside, the fact that Vutezoth knew where to find him the first time around was a clear warning to not let himself be found there again. "Where are we supposed to go, then?"

"We can figure out a temporary residence as we go along." Scott didn't have any clear answers for that question, mostly because he didn't know the island as well as Paul did, but also because he wasn't certain what constituted a "safe" place around there. "Right now, I think we all need a moment to recover, preferably someplace we can do so uninterrupted. I doubt most of us are in any condition for another fight, especially if those angels come lurking."

"Right..." Paul looked up as Ranuen approached, gritting his teeth at the sight of the injuries the mage had sustained, particularly the gash in his abdomen. "Oh God, dude, you...!" He took a step forward, then he stopped himself. He knew Ranuen was capable of bouncing back from some pretty harsh stuff. There was a distinct possibility he could heal this as well. Besides, Paul had a feeling that Ranuen wouldn't want to be doted over, especially if he felt as unsatisfied by that encounter as Paul did.

Instead, the dragon man simply let out a sigh and offered a hand. "You... look like you need patched up. You need a lift? Might as well focus your energy on healing."

Scott took a moment to assess the situation, deciding that those assembled likely didn't require professional medical attention; Ranuen, maybe, but Paul seemed to be conveying that the mage could heal himself, and it was doubtful that this would be his first time doing so. Leaving his brother to deal with that matter, Scott addressed Leanne. "Knowing what I know about this girl... I can't say I trust her to go easy on your friend. If you have any idea where they might be heading or, if nothing else, where we could hide out for the time being, I'm all ears."

[DanteMGalileo]

"I, uh... good enough. I can try to patch him up later, I guess." Leanne glanced upwards, wincing slightly. "Provided there's enough left of him, of course." When asked about where they were going or shelter, Leanne shook her head. "Dunno where they're going. Uh... do I know where they're going?"

No.

"Nope, I don't know where they're going. Just gotta wait, I guess..." Leanne shrugged. "As for shelter... I heard something about a bar? Maybe we can hide out there? ... Where is it from here, anyway?"

"... I can retrieve the bones after. Just please tell me they won't be disturbed."

"I'm not sure. But that's the only place I can think of where scavengers would be. Sorry..."

"No, no. F... They say that fully intact bones are a rarity for these things..."

"... Do you want me to accompany you to the woods? Or do you just need me to carry him?"

"N-No, you can stay if you want. Just... I just..."

[ColArana]

Ranuen was deliberately blocking out Wil and Val's conversation at this point, if only to give them some privacy, diverting his entire focus to the group in front of him. Paul's reaction... wasn't unwarranted. "...I mean. If someone can spare something I can use to stem the bleeding. A huge bandage roll's good enough." He commented. "I can heal the wound, but it'll take awhile. Way longer than just a broken bone. ...There'll probably be a scar." Well that was inevitable. "...Bloody hell..." He growled. A scar. He knew full well there were more than a few people here wishing someone else had gotten off with just a scar or broken bones. When Paul offered him a lift, he shook his head. "I'm pretty burned out, but... I got a few more minutes at this height." He replied. "Long enough anyways..." He sighed deeply. "I'm sorry Paul. If I was stronger... maybe we could have averted this outcome..." Ranuen was pretty clearly in a state of self-loathing right now.

At the discussion of a hideout Ranuen shrugged. "A bar huh? That must be the night club... I mean. It'll work as well as anywhere else. The Hotel is probably not a good spot right now. I guess it'll make for a good temporary place to hide if the patrons are willing to let us use it as such..."" He looked around. "It'd be..... That way. I think?" He replied, looking in a specific direction. "Course my mind's a little fuzzy from the bloodloss right now."

[ParamountKeymaster]

"You referring to the club that the two non-hostile angels run?" Scott asked, tilting his head towards downtown. "I guess it's as good a place as any for now. At least we'll have someone watching our backs. Maybe they'll have the supplies to stitch Ranuen up too."

Paul couldn't help but sigh hearing Ranuen's words, all the while taking off his outer shirt and tossing it to the wounded swordsman. "Hey, c'mon, man, don't say that. Against a dragon that size, I'd say you did fine. No one would've demanded anything more out of you. Honestly, if anything, I... I..."

He trailed off as he slowly, dejectedly looked around at the utter mess they were in, finding it difficult to take it all in. Percy was missing and undeniably mutilated. Kelsey was gone... again... and her emotional stability was quite likely in jeopardy. Though Scott was spared a great deal of physical trauma, one had to wonder how capable he was of trusting Kelsey at this point. Ranuen was severely wounded. Flint was dead. Val was in shambles and Will was only barely holding it together for her sake. So much of the hotel and the city surrounding it had been critically damaged. And all because Paul's friends had gotten in the way of what he knew without a doubt was his fight.

With a heavy sigh and a heavier heart, Paul started walking, gesturing for the others to follow, his voice an empty murmur. "Come on. Let's see if Lobo and Loba can help us out of this."

"Fine by me," Scott softly replied, following his brother and quickly catching up to him. He briefly raised a hand, nearly connecting with Paul's shoulder for the sake of a comforting pat, but he knowingly backed off when he saw the burns that the acid had left in the dragon man's scales. Even if they weren't there, Scott couldn't be too sure if such a gesture would've been appreciated. Paul needed to think things through. No reason not to let him.

In their walk, Paul looked back at Will, Val, and the limp body in the former's arms, wondering what he needed to do for them. What he needed to do to remedy any of this.

He felt so... helpless. So weak. If Paul was sure of anything now, it was that he was more man than dragon.